The Beginning of Hope
by CinnamonRoll13
Summary: This story takes place before Mikan enrolled in the Academy. Natsume has lost hope in his life and the future. Everything seemed so meaningless to him as he sank deeper and deeper into the darkness. Even in his sleep, he couldn't escape from nightmares. Until one night, he dreamed of meeting someone important to him…his own mother.
1. Hopeless

**A/N:** This is my second Gakuen Alice fan fiction. I hope you like it. Please kindly leave your reviews after you finished reading. :)

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Gakuen Alice and all the characters in it.

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**Chapter 1: Hopeless**

Natsume was bleeding about everywhere. He staggered past the tall gate of the Academy in the dead of the night, leaving trails of blood behind. Upon his arrival, the man who's in charge of guarding the gate that night wore an expression as if a ghost standing in front of him. It took a few seconds until he noticed the school uniform he was wearing and that he was actually a live human being. So he opened the gate for him but with just a glance over his eyes Natsume knew exactly what was in his mind. Confusion, sympathy, horror, fear or even disgust. He didn't blame the poor guy for reacting like that. In fact he was very familiar with the look. Almost everyone who saw him every time he came back looking like a whole load of shit just like tonight gave him the exact same gaze.

Well, almost means that a heartless person like Persona wouldn't even care how bad he was hurt as long as the mission succeeded. And for his fellow Dangerous ability, getting injured was never something to be overreacted about. Some of them even injured themselves deliberately to avoid being assigned into a mission sometimes or when they knew they had failed, in hope to spare themselves from Persona's wrath and reduce the punishment they'd received after. It may sound cowardice and pathetic but for them, there's just too much at stake. While the other students were busy with school life and their star ranking, member of Dangerous Ability were avoiding guns and bombs thrown at them. They had only one hope; to make it past the years alive so they could finally graduated from this hell called Alice Academy where they spent everyday's life walking on thin ice. One mistake on a mission and they could be gone forever before anyone even noticed.

But Natsume didn't give a damn about all that. For him, regardless of how many missions he succeeded and survived from, he knew he wouldn't live long enough to see graduation. In fact, he'd be very lucky if he could make it past the middle school. He was eight when the first symptom started to appear. Persona had to drag him back to the Academy and he was admitted to the hospital when he suddenly collapsed in the middle of a mission. That's when they found out he has the fourth type Alice, the limitless one that consumes its user's own life and would eventually kill him if being overused. He was terrified. He didn't want to die. He thought about his father, regretting how he left without even saying a single word of goodbye to him. He couldn't, to be exact. It was too painful at that time, leaving the family that he cared about the most, knowing that he wouldn't be able to meet them again until thirteen years later.

Back then he thought his decision of going to Alice Academy was for the best. They promised him that Aoi would get every medical attention she needed for her recovery and his father could really pursue his dream as a comic artist without having to hide from the Academy anymore. He had Ruka by his side, and he was sure things couldn't get any worse, but he was proven wrong. Little did he know back then, even though she no longer had her Alice, Aoi too, was taken from their father's arms and hidden somewhere by Persona inside this Academy, only so they could bind his neck with a thick unbreakable chain called his sister's life, and the one holding and pulling it was none other than the Elementary School Principal himself, the man Natsume hated more than anything. Since then, he only had one purpose in life; to save Aoi so they can live together in the outside world as a family once again.

Now, he realized those dreams that he held onto so tight every night before he slept might never become a reality. He could feel his body deteriorating with each breath he took and while the everlasting pain was so noticeable most of the time, it was conveniently overlooked and they just turned a blind eye on him. He'd be given twice his workload if he ever complained, or they'd have Ruka do it instead. So he stopped voicing his thought, and every night he would just swallow the blood from the back of his throat, put on the Black Cat mask and unleash the monster they made him to be. He lost count on how many times he visited and spent his night at the hospital. The doctors never told him the whole story about his health, no, because the knowledge would be too much for an eight year old to handle. But from the various treatments conducted and the amount of medications they prescribed to him, it was clear how bad his condition was and with that, Natsume could more or less guess the prognosis of his illness. Even so, he bit back the bitter truth because nothing could be done otherwise.

Natsume had never called for help; no one could help him anyway. He stopped crying ages ago, as he also stopped hoping there would be a warm hand stretched out towards him, not to hurt, but to pull him out of the darkness he didn't know how to get out from. For these two years, he'd been struggling alone for every sleepless night that was so freaking painful. He finally reached to the point where he thought the only way to be free from nightmares is to die. No more waking up to the pain, no more missions, no more pills. He could sleep peacefully for eternity without having to worry about anything else. It sounded so tempting, but the time to finally put down the burden he'd been carrying around on his shoulder and let go of everything still hasn't come, not yet, not until he made sure that Aoi is free from Persona and Kuonji and returned safely to her father. Until then, with bleeding hands he'd still clutch onto the thinnest thread offered to him at the edge of a cliff, even if he's bound to fall in the end.

His legs felt like mush, Natsume forced one step after another until he reached the hallway of their dormitory. He cursed as he tripped over his own feet and fell heavily to the ground, groaning for every cut and bruises on his body that screamed as they collided roughly with the hard floor. Everything in his sight became a blur. His heartbeat quickened and his breathing was anything but even. He frowned as the familiar metallic taste in his mouth became overwhelming. Knowing what was coming; he clenched his hands and put it in front of his chest while the queasy feeling climbed up his throat. The next thing he knew he was hacking, retching and coughing dark red blood that splattered all over his shirt and onto the floor. It was a very terrible sensation that lasted for about a minute before he started curling into a ball, wheezing and choking his own breath. Tears prickled behind his tightly closed eyes as he touched his clammy forehead with the back of his hand, feeling it too hot to his liking.

After what seemed like forever he finally mustered the strength to get up, his muscles quivered but he continued walking until he stumbled into his own room. Natsume pulled open a drawer and took out a great amount of pills from three different bottles into his hand then gulped them all at once. It consisted mostly of pain killers and sleeping drugs, and he couldn't care less even if he overdosed. He sat silently for a while, not bothering to change his sticky clothes or at least clean the blood on his body, even when it stained the white sheets covering his mattress.

While enduring his pain, Natsume thought about how much he hated his life and he wished everything would just disappear in this crooked, filthy world where people lie everyday and everyone puts on a phony front to mask their true nature as the most arrogant, self-centered, selfish beings, because despite his young age, Natsume had seen and known too much darkness that he could never look at the world the same way it never was again. He loathed those students in the Academy who could still smile and laugh ignorantly because they never knew what it felt like to have somebody dying right in front of their eyes; they never knew what the smell of burning human flesh was like, all the faces and the screams, and guns, and fires, and that if he died they'd probably be the one taking his place, so let's see how long those smiles will last when they found out life isn't all sunshine and rainbows. Better enjoy your oh-so-peaceful little life while you still can! Those thought entered Natsume's mind as he slowly drifting into sleep.

At first he thought it would be another nightmare. He always had the same nightmare recently, where he returned to their old house up on the hill near the village. He was alone when fire started to appear and suddenly the whole house was burning. He was trapped inside, but behind the thick black smoke from the window he could still make out the sight of the fire that was spreading at an abnormal speed towards the village, and soon everything was engulfed in flames. He watched in horror as the sound of the bloodcurdling screams came from every direction, tearing him apart.

Help us!

It hurts!

He told them all to go away. It wasn't his fault. It was the Academy's trick that got the whole village burned down. He crouched down and had his hands covering his ears but the cries of death were only getting louder. Then he realized they were not coming from around him, but from the inside.

Murderer!

It was the screams of the people he killed during his missions. Men, women and even children. Yes, it might not have been his fire that burned down the village, but he sure had killed those people with his own hands. And they're coming after him. He felt so helpless when he witnessed burning corpses began to rise one by one from ashes and flames and surrounded him, every one of them seeking for revenge. They're getting close, and he closed his eyes, ready to atone for his sins. Then just before their hands could reach him, he jerked awake gasping for air, covered in sweat, however glad because the nightmare's over.

But this time was different. When he opened his eyes he was at a beach, the same beach where his father had brought him and Aoi once in commemoration of his deceased mother. It was his first, and would probably be the last time he ever saw the sea. Everything was exactly how he remembered it. The sky was filled with various shades of crimson and bright orange as the blazing sun was setting, receding slowly into the ocean, and the sound of the waves crashing against the shore reminded him of a much peaceful time when they spent hours just staring at the sea, and the day his father promised them that a better times would come where even as Alices they would be able to live freely someday, no more running or hiding from the Academy, and they could just do anything they like because the possibilities were as limitless as the ocean. Natsume foolishly believed it for once because he knew his mother had worked hard to make this world a better place for Alices, but back then he had no idea, no idea at all that some darkness was just so dense and menacing that not even the brightest light could put an end to it.

Natsume drifted his eyes from the horizon and decided to walk along the shore. After walking for a few minute he spotted somebody standing far to his left, staring at the sea. It was a woman. Even though he could only saw her back, Natsume couldn't have mistaken the figure and her shoulder-length raven hair that was swiftly blown by the wind. She's the person he had known for such a long time. Half disbelieving, he ran barefooted on the sand towards the woman, each step felt unusually light that he wasn't even panting at all when he stopped right behind her. Feeling his presence, the woman turned around and Natsume's eyes became wide.

"Mother?"

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**A/N:** I'm going to post the next chapter tomorrow so please follow and favorite if you like this story. Also don't forget to leave your reviews. Thanks for reading by the way.


	2. Reunion

**Chapter 2: Reunion**

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"Hello Natsume." Kaoru Hyuuga, his mother smiled gently at him. She was just as beautiful and young, wearing a long sunflower printed dress and a big white floppy beach hat that was so perfectly in contrast to her hair color, and her crimson eyes resembled the sunset behind her. A light, warm breeze brushed her hair as she approached her son and wrapped him tightly in her arms. "Look at how much you've grown up. I can't believe you were just so tiny back then." She said sentimentally, her eyes glistening.

Natsume was bowled over. He couldn't believe it. He was only three when his mother died in _that_ accident. Was this really her? He opened his mouth then shut it again. He missed his mother just as much, but before he got too carried away in the moment he paused as he realized something far more concerning. He pulled away from her embrace and frowned. "Am I… Am I dead?" He fearfully asked.

His mother raised an eyebrow. "And what makes you think like that?"

"Because…" He stuttered, trying to figure out the right words to say. He didn't want to say it at first, afraid that his mother would be disappointed of him, but she kept waiting for an answer so he was left with no choice. "Because I'm in a mess. Everything in my life is screwed up. My Alice has burned me out and I know those missions would eventually get me killed sooner or later."And it would likely be sooner rather than later considering he had taken so many opioids tonight because it was so damn hurt everywhere. "Beside, all this time all I ever had was nightmares. This place, and meeting you like this, even if this is just a dream it would still be impossible unless I really am dead this time."

Kaoru chuckled. "Of course you're not dead, Natsume. You're too overthinking it. Though I must say that side of yours really resembles father, you know?" She patted his head affectionately, and for the first time Natsume felt like a ten year old kid again, but he kept his expression unchanged.

"So this is all just a dream?"

"What else would it be?"

"But how can you be here?"

"What? I can't visit my son's dream?" She folded her arms teasingly. "Besides, I never really left. All this time, even though you cannot see me Natsume I'm always right here, watching over you. And since you looked extremely upset and worn out, only for tonight I drove all those nightmares away from you because I know how much you deserved a well uninterrupted rest after all you've been through." She had a nice soothing voice that Natsume remembered he used to hear a lot when he was little.

Before Natsume could say anything, she leaned forward, caressing his cheek. "Mommy's so sorry Natsume. Because of me you have to end up like this. If you hadn't inherited my life-shortening type Alice, you wouldn't have to suffer so much in your life. I'm sorry, I'm sorry because I failed to protect you. I left so early even before I had a chance to teach you anything as a mother and I couldn't give you and Aoi a much better life you deserve."A drop of tear fell down from her cheek.

Natsume didn't have so many memory of his mother, but seeing her cry like this made him feel somewhat guilty and sad. He took her hand from his cheek and held it in his. "It's not your fault." He said quietly. "It all happened because… I'm just too weak that I can't even protect Aoi."

"No." She wiped away her tears. "You're not weak, Natsume. I know how much you struggled all this time. You always make sacrifices for the people around you and even willing to put your happiness aside to protect them, ensuring they'll never get hurt, and for me it's not a weakness. You've done a very great job until now and I'm so proud of you." Natsume was slightly surprised. No one had ever said that to him. All this time nothing, not even a single word of thank you had ever been uttered for all the hard works—dirty works he had to do on the missions, risking his every time life to make sure no terrorists would ever overrun the Academy. It would simply mean punishment if he failed and nothing if he succeeded, as if he did it willingly or it was something he's obliged to do from the start. And so much for being a teacher, all Persona had ever do was constantly reminding him about how worthless and pathetic he was and even though he tried to deny it, deep down he started to think what he said was true, that his mere existence brought nothing but shame to everyone, even his own family. That's why hearing this spoken directly by his mother meant so much to him. And for the next few seconds he found himself lost for words before he could finally say, "Well, thank you… I guess?"

Kaoru laughed. "You don't have to be so formal with me. I'm not some stranger you just met." She pinched Natsume's cheek in a teasing way and he squinted grumpily at her in response. "Well, even though you've grown up, looks like that grumpy face still hasn't changed at all ever since you're a baby. You should smile more Natsume. It's such a shame to waste that handsome face of yours." She teased him again by pinching his other cheek and seemed amused by his reaction. "Say, have you got yourself a girlfriend?" She asked curiously.

Okay. Not until a minute ago he was so goddamn worried about being dead and now his mother asked whether he already had a girlfriend. Natsume refused to answer and just rolled his eyes.

Kaoru rested her arm on top of her son's head. "Come on. When I was your age, I already had at least one or two boyfriends. Since you also inherited my looks, I don't believe no girl has fallen for you."

He rolled his eyes again. "Well, if you want to know, unfortunately I've been so busy surviving and trying to keep myself alive every day that I don't have time for any cheesy love story." He replied sarcastically. "Beside, those girls were so noisy and annoying that I almost couldn't stand them."

"Meaning you haven't found the one, huh?"

A shrugged.

She sighed. "You know, when I met your father for the first time he was my junior in the middle class. As a latent ability student, he didn't stand out much. There's also nothing special about him. But on that day, I decided to break up with my other boyfriends and confessed my love to him afterward. He was so shy that I had to force him a little, though." She said recalling the specific moment that Natsume wasn't sure he wanted to hear about. "Well, he ran away from me after a teacher caught us red-handed and since I was so close to graduation I thought I'd never meet him again. But a few years later right after he graduated your father came looking for me, asking me to marry him. This is what you called love. And he has given me the greatest gift I've ever received, you and Aoi, and more than that, a family I've always wanted to have." She smiled. "And just like me, you're going to find the person you love too someday, Natsume."

Natsume frowned slightly. The thought of growing up as an adult and even having his own family had never even once crossed his mind, because the idea itself was too absurd as he knew he wouldn't live long enough for that to happen. It was something so far away beyond his reach. And what's the point of loving somebody if you can't be together in the end? Besides, having more people he cares about means giving Persona more chances to push him into the corner and the last thing he needed right now was having Kuonji holding more people over his head. Aoi and Ruka was enough. More than enough to break him completely if he ever loses them. So no, he didn't need such things as love and no matter what happened he promised himself to never fall in love with anyone.

"I don't know." Natsume said quietly. "I definitely can't, won't have time for that. My clock is already counting down, Mother. Even now I can already feel my Alice is killing me from the inside."

"Na—"

"But I'm not scared of death. The only thing I'm afraid of is that I won't be able to save Aoi before my time is up. She's the reason I haven't given up living until now, but it's been two years and I still haven't found her. She had to go through all this because of me and I couldn't imagine what they will do to her if I die. I'm her brother and she needs me but I can't do anything to save her. It scares me so much. But I just, I don't know what to do anymore." He said frustratingly. It's strange. He hadn't been able to let these words out of his chest for two years he'd been keeping it even from Ruka, but right now he felt like getting it all out. Maybe because he sensed a deep connection with his mother as they both owned the same Alice-type, or maybe just because he knew this all wasn't real and he wouldn't cause any harm to anyone by letting his pent-up fears and weakness be known, because as a black ops agent he wasn't allowed to show any of that.

Still looking at her son, Kaoru changed her smile into a deep sigh. "Don't always blame yourself over what happened to your sister, Natsume. I'm sure that's not what Aoi wants either. Instead of throwing your life away like this, she'd want her big brother to be able to smile, and to live not just for her, but also for your own happiness." Yeah. He could imagine Aoi saying those words. His sister was the total opposite of him, so cheerful and optimist. She had always wanted to see him smile, saying that it was rare and precious, and even told him that she'd be smiling a lot in his place when he couldn't. Natsume wondered if Aoi's still smiling now. The last time he saw her she was so scared and hurt, and it broke him knowing that she had lost all of her memories. "I'm not telling you to give up looking for her, but please, don't sacrifice your own life for that. Don't repeat the same mistake I made, Natsume."

"What do you mean?"

Kaoru hesitated for a moment, her face turned into a grim expression. "The accident that took away my life, actually, was set up by the ESP. And I know it, but still at that time I decided to go because I thought if I left the Academy wouldn't target you or Aoi. If I had known how things would turn out, I would've stayed longer by your side to protect you. Even now I still regret it very much." Natsume clenched his fist instinctively. As if he needed more reasons to hate Kuonji. That evil bastard had not just taken his sister, but also murdered his mother, and he swore with everything he had left in him that he would kill that man someday.

Kaoru turned around, facing the sea. "This place. It's beautiful, isn't it? I'm really glad that you and Aoi had a chance to see this." There was a wistful look in her eyes as she spoke. "_Such a limitless place. Even the sun shines brighter in here. _That's what a very dear friend of mine used to say. Because of her, I don't know since when it also became my dream to be able to go see the beach someday. Because they prohibited Alices to go near any coastal borders, despite my job as a freelance journalist I've never been into one my entire life. Maybe that's why I associated this place so much with freedom, and I hoped I could see and share this freedom together with my family. Unfortunately because my condition worsened from time to time, your father had to cancel all the trips we had planned for several times. In the end, I never really had the chance to see the ocean with my own eyes."

"Mother…" Natsume remembered how often he heard coughing sound coming from his parents' room, and the days when his mother wouldn't get out of the bed at all for the whole day saying that she was tired and when sometimes he'd find lots of blood stained tissues in the garbage bin. Despite from the accident that had taken her life, his mother's condition was already that bad at that time, but back then Natsume was still too young to understand.

"So Natsume," His mother looked at him straight in his eyes, crimson to crimson. "The reason I'm telling you all this is because I want you to be able to cherish your own life, live instead of just surviving, because when you're dead it's really the end. You can't go back no matter how much regret you have. I know it's difficult; you're trapped and have no other choice but to walk such a thorny path in your life that you never wished for, but remember that you never have to walk alone. I too, faced a lot of hardships during my life, and the reason I was able to overcome it all was because of the help of the people around me. You might feel so lost right now with all the darkness surrounding you, but the only way you could ever find the light you've been searching for is by stop shutting yourself from everybody and start putting your trust to all the people around you, and I believe someday you'll find those hands that'll pull you out of this hell you've been living."

Kaoru smiled softly, a soothing smile that almost made Natsume forget all his worries. "Everything is going to be alright, my son. Even now, I can feel that _help_ is already coming your way. You'll only need to reach for it and believe no matter how hard the situation you're in right now, every day is working towards a better tomorrow. The future is still long ahead of you. You'll accomplish a lot of things in life that I couldn't, see the ending of the story that we've started, and even make our dreams of turning the Academy into a better place come true, because you are my son. You have my blessings, and no matter what happens, I will always love you." She hugged him for one more time, so heart-warming and tender. Natsume didn't know that a person's touch could be so calming that he wished this moment of peace could last forever. Even if what his mother said wasn't true it didn't matter. Maybe it was all he needed this whole time, for someone to understand him and, even though it's a lie, say that everything's going to be fine, there's still hope left for him, and despite everything, not giving up on him.

For the first time he felt safe in someone's arms. Only for now he felt that he didn't have to look so tough, didn't have to bear the entire burden alone, didn't have to be the one in charge and always look out for everyone because actually he was no different than any children his age. Not a Black Cat, not a fire caster, not a Dangerous Ability student that everyone was so afraid of, because behind it all he's just an ordinary kid who's trapped in the fear of losing someone precious to him.

Unfortunately, that comforting moment had to end as he noticed something was off. Natsume abruptly pulled away to witness his mother's body was now becoming transparent, slowly disappearing right in front of him. "Mother!" No! She can't leave yet! He still had a lot to say, a lot to ask her. He frantically tried to reach out, grasping her hands as if it could stop her from fading away. "Wait!" He shouted. "Don't go!"

"Oh, I'm not going anywhere." His mother said serenely. "But you are."

"Natsume!" He heard a voice calling his name, a very familiar voice.

"Looks like it's time for you to wake up."

"Wha—" Before he could protest Natsume felt everything started to spin around him as if the ground was crumbling beneath his feet. _Wait!_ He tried to say something but his voice just wouldn't come out. As his vision becoming blurred he focused on his mother's face, squeezing her arms. "Don't worry, my son. You'll be okay. I'll always be watching over you." She held his hands. "I love you."

That was all he could catch. The last words from his mother. He could no longer hear or see her after that. Like a curtain had been pulled down in his vision, everything turned black and faded into nothingness. She's gone. And suddenly he was alone again in the dark. But unlike before, there was no feeling of fear rose within him. A voice that had been calling his name over and over guided him and even though he couldn't see anything he knew exactly where to go. He got up and ran to where the voice came from until he began to be aware of every pain in his body again, a nice reminder that he's alive.

He slowly opened his eyes.

"Natsume!"

It was Ruka, his best friend, his only friend, staring down at him with an extremely worried look on his face. As soon as his eyes were fully opened, Natsume tried to get up but failed at the effort and fell onto his back again groaning in pain.

"Don't move yet. You're hurt pretty bad."

He realized his body was now full of bandages that had been wrapped neatly enough on all his wounds, including the one on the back of his head. Two years treating his injuries had apparently made Ruka become quite proficient at things like this, and Natsume didn't know whether he should be thankful because of it. One thing for certain was that he was grateful to see him here when he opened his eyes. He glanced at the window from the corner of his eye and noticed the sun was already shining bright outside. "What time is it?" He asked weakly.

"It's past midday already." Ruka answered. "The animals told me that they saw you come back last night but you didn't come to class so I got worried and came here to check on you during lunch break. Luckily you forgot to lock your door, that's how I got in. But then I saw you lying on your bed, just lying there, covered in blood. You weren't moving at all and your face was pale as a sheet. You almost gave me a heart attack because of it. I thought, I thought you were already—" He stopped, couldn't get himself to say the next word. Instead tears were beginning to well up in his eyes.

"Sorry for making you worry." Natsume replied. It was all he could say. He couldn't find any words that could comfort his best friend because he knew Ruka would know if he faked it just to calm him down. And he'd be totally lying if he said he was fine. He felt awful, everywhere was hurt. The painkillers had worn off, leaving only a severe headache and disgusting bitter taste in his mouth. But somehow, apart from all the physical injuries he didn't feel as bad as he was last night.

There was something in him that wasn't there before, inside his chest where he felt a new source of strength flickering along with the beating of his heart, giving him the courage to have hope once again that this pain wouldn't last forever. He would be able to see the end of it someday. Things would get better in his life. Natsume closed his eyes. His hands felt warm. It was short, the meeting with his mother, but he remembered every detail of it. Last night wasn't just a dream. It probably was, the beginning of hope. She told him to hang on because help was already coming. He wondered what she meant by that. But if it's true, Natsume was sure he would find out soon enough.

He was right.


	3. At the Beginning

** 3: At the Beginning**

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** One week later**

"Hello everyone! Once again, my name is Mikan Sakura. Starting from today I'm officially joining this class as an Alice. Nice to meet you all!" Mikan introduced herself cheerfully as Narumi-sensei wrote her name on the blackboard for the whole class to see. Everyone was so surprised and amazed that she had returned safely from the Northern-woods and even passed her entrance exam. They all welcomed her as a part of the class. Everyone except Natsume.

_What's with this idiotic, bubbly, happy-go-lucky polka dotted panties girl?_—He hated her. Her cheerful personality reminded him of Aoi. He hated her more for that.

Narumi clapped his hands to quiet the class. "Okay. Now that everyone's here, I'm going to choose somebody as Mikan's partner who will be responsible to guide her through her life in this Academy." He smiled broadly. "That person is, Natsume Hyuuga."

_What!?— _That fucking, perverted did it deliberately just to add to his torture, and he was laughing at him for that. If he wasn't so exhausted and had his Alice restraint mask on at the moment he would've burned his curly blonde hair to a crisp. There's no way he would be able to stand this girl, as if his life wasn't terrible enough already. "Like I care." He made a clear statement, staring into the Idiotic's hazel eyes which seemed to despise him just as much. Good. She should've known her place and stayed away from him. Their existence was completely the opposite. He was darkness while she was light after all. Nothing good would come with them being together. Nothing.

Little did he know that she was '_the light' _that someday would illuminate all the darkness in him.

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**A/N:** Do you like it? Let me know what you think. Your reviews would mean a lot to me. ;)

Also, after reading this chapter I'd like you to listen to "At the Beginning" by Donna Lewis and Richard Marx, because I think the song fits perfectly with Natsume and Mikan's story. I'm also going to post the lyrics in the next page.


	4. Lyrics

**At the Beginning**

**by Donna Lewis and Richard Marx**

We were strangers

Starting out on a journey

Never dreaming what we'd have to go through

Now here we are

And I'm suddenly standing

At the beginning with you

No one told me

I was going to find you

Unexpected what you did to my heart

When I lost hope

You were there to remind me

This is the start

And life is a road and I wanna keep going

Love is a river I wanna keep flowing

Life is a road, now and forever

Wonderful journey

I'll be there when the world stops turning

I'll be there when the storm is through

In the end I wanna be standing

At the beginning

with you

We were strangers on a crazy adventure

Never dreaming how our dreams would come true

Now here we stand

Unafraid of the future

At the beginning with you

I know there was somebody somewhere

Like me alone in the dark

Now I know my dreams will live on

I've been waiting so long

Nothing's gonna tear us apart

And life is a road and I wanna keep going

Love is a river I wanna keep flowing

Life is a road, now and forever

Wonderful journey

I'll be there when the world stops turning

I'll be there when the storm is through

In the end I wanna be standing

At the beginning

with you


End file.
